Family Pathways Food Donation

CMS students gathered approximately 300 pounds during our food drive throughout the past few weeks.  Today they made the delivery to Family Pathways. Way to go!

CMS Holiday Door Decorating Contest

We have creative teachers and students at CMS. 

November Students of Character

Maryellen Fiebing

Chase Carstensen

Reid Kirschman

Abby Kuzelka

Kate Larson

Elyse Muehlhauser

Mia Patterson

East Central Crisis Services

Did you know that Isanti County has a service to help with a mental health crisis?

East Central Crisis Services (ECCS) provides assistance to Chisago, Isanti, Pine, Kanabec, and Mille Lacs County residents who are experiencing a mental health crisis.

ECCS can assist if you or someone you care about is experiencing a crisis involving: thoughts of wanting to harm self or others, panic, hopelessness, mood swings, angry outbursts, anxiety, hallucinations, depression, delusions, increased substance use, isolation, self-injury.

To reach a trained crisis counselor by phone, call 1-800-523-3333.  Or you can text the work "Life" to 61222.

In an immediate, life-threatening situation, go to the nearest hospital emergency room or dial 911.

ECCS is a cooperative effort of:  Canvas Health, Therapeutic Services Agency, Lighthouse Child & Family Services LLC, Resources, Inc.  Offered in partnership with the Adult Mental Health Initiative in region 7E.

Source:
East Central Crisis Services, 1700 E Rum River Dr S, Suite E, Cambridge, MN 55008
CanvasHealth.org

CMS/IMS Food Drive Competition

Coming Soon:  CMS Food Drive (and pets too!)

CMS will be participating in a food drive from December 10-21.  We will be collecting regular canned goods and non-perishables.  In addition, we will be collecting pet food and supplies.  As part of the food drive we will be having a friendly, but fiercely competitive :), contest against IMS in the pet food division of the food drive.

Also, for each pet food or pet supply/product donated, the CMS student will receive a ticket to be entered into a prize drawing.  At the end of the competition we will draw a winner from each grade to receive a $25 gift card!

The winner of the friendly, but fiercely competitive :), contest between CMS and IMS will be the proud owners of a traveling trophy for the year.  Let's show our generosity this Holiday Season by helping those in need with food drive items!

All items will be donated to Family Pathways in Cambridge.

Free Bikes 4 Kidz

Allina Health and Cambridge Medical Center are having a bike give-away event.  Bikes are available on a first come first serve basis.  If you have a child in need of a bike, please contact me by November 16 at 763-552-6311 or rodonovan@c-ischools.org.  I will need the following information for each child in need:  name, age, height, gender.

Go here for more information: Bikes 4 Kidz

Thank you to CMS Former Military Personnel

On this Veteran's Day, we would like to recognize the following CMS staff members that have served in the military.  Thank you for your service!

Tara Gann, Interventionist
Kevin Larson, Science Teacher

October Students of Character

Aaliyah Johnson

Cody Green

Molly Hennen

Alisha Ricahrdson

Christian Smith

Andrew Aljets

Jasmyn Neubauer

Sam Opgaard

Allie Larkin

Lacey Lambert

Brayden Petersen

Mackenzie Pruden

Skylar Eaton

6th Graders Enjoy Long Lake

Orienteering 

Canoeing

French voyagers

The bog walk 

Unity Day

September Students of Character

Congrats and nice work to the following CMS Students of Character for the month of September!

Jeremiah White

Nicole Baker

Sam Haseth

Abby LaPierre

Destinee Anderson

Milo Thul

Kaden Peterson

Hunter Hemmer

Autumn Johnson

Anti-Bullying Pledge

239 students at CMS took the anti-bullying pledge!

Why is school attendance important?

Attendance is a very important piece to your child's potential success in school.  If your child needs to miss school, please contact the attendance line at 763-552-6310.  Please give the reason for the absence.

Did you know that CMS is required to send home letters when a student has 3 or more unexcused absences and/or 7 or more of any absences?  Students that have 10 or more any absences may be required to provide a doctor's note.

Why is school attendance so important?

 Robert Balfanz and Hedy Nai-Lin Chang explore this question in their article titled "A Focus on Attendance is Key to Success."

Here are a few key pieces of that article:

Nationwide, 5 –7.5 million students are chronically absent each year, a problem that contributes to higher dropout rates and wider achievement gaps. We know that more than a million teenagers drop out of high school each year in the United States, and millions more fail to develop the language and learning skills needed to sustain themselves as adults, let alone live to their full potential.

Chronic absenteeism begins to rise in middle school and continues climbing through 12th grade. A Baltimore study found a strong relationship between sixth-grade attendance and on-time graduation rates. Chronic absence in middle school is one of the best indicators we have that a student will drop out later. A study in Utah found that students who were chronically absent in any year between eighth and 12th grades were 7.5 times more likely to drop out of high school

Most recently, an analysis by the National Assessment of Educational Progress found that absences had consequences for fourth- and eighth-graders: 56% of eighth-graders who performed at the advanced level in NAEP reading in 2011 had perfect attendance in the month before the test, compared with 39% of students who performed below the basic level; in contrast, nearly one in five eighth-grade students at the basic level and more than one in four below basic in reading had missed three or more days in the previous month.

To read more go here:  A Focus on Attendance is Key to Success

For more information on Minnesota truancy laws go here:  MN Truancy Laws

Let's have a great year at CMS!

Together Against Bullying

Students take the anti-bullying pledge......and sign the "Together Against Bullying" banner.

Receiving Progress Reports via Family Access

Did you know that you can receive periodic progress reports for your student through Family Access?

Here are the directions:

1.  Go to:  http://www.cambridge.k12.mn.us/~cmschool/.
2.  Click Family Access and log in
3.  To receive progress reports click on My Account.
4.  Check the boxes of information you would like to receive.

October - National Bullying Prevention Month

TOGETHER AGAINST BULLYING - United for kindness, acceptance, and inclusion.

We will be talking about bullying this month at CMS with the following activities being planned:

• Student will be able to take the anti-bullying pledge during lunches.  Students participating will receive a certificate of completion and they will sign the TOGETHER AGAINST BULLYING banner.
• Students in Skill Builder courses will participate in Bullying lessons and activities.
• For the first week of October we will focus on these themes and morning announcements will be read daily on the topic.
• Monday - Bullying 101
• Tuesday - What Can You Do?
• Wednesday - Students and Adults Working Together
• Thursday - Bullying Prevention: It's Not Just a Week
• Friday - The End of Bullying Begins with You
• And other class specific activities

Please take this opportunity to discuss this important topic with your child.  For more information visit:  www.pacer.org/bullying/.